" The film has elements of a Masterpiece Theater-style Cinderella story. But its dimensional portrait of proper upper-class British society calling into question its long-held convictions about status and tradition is compelling. "

" It's a sweet little tale, and that co-writer Tony Briggs is the son of one of the real-life singers adds to the heart-tugging. In the end, though, it's not quite enough to sustain a feature-length film. "

" The Sapphiresshouldn't gleam as brightly as it does. The up-from-struggle story follows the predictable form of movies like these, from Dreamgirls to The Commitments. But there's such a sense of joy ... that it's hard not to be won over. "

" Let's trivialize a legacy of cruelty and denigration, in a country where indigenous people suffered from centuries of human rights abuse! And let's make the carnage of Vietnam look like a paintball game! "